Global Media Awards Presented in Washington DC

The Population Institute held our 33^rd Annual Global Media Awards in Washington DC in January. We were honored to have two of our winners speak at the awards ceremony, Richard Ottaway, the British MP who won for his essay Sex, Ideology and Religion: 10 myths about world population growth, and Ken Weiss, the Los Angeles Times reporter who won for his series Beyond 7 Billion.

Richard Ottaway spoke about the need to discuss population issues and the importance of family planning.  In his remarks he said that, "Family planning is one of the most cost effective health interventions in the developing world. Meeting the unmet need for contraception preserves resources, supports human rights, empowers women, improves the health of children, protects the environment, reduces conflict, lowers global fertility rates and improves economic development. And that’s not bad for the price of a packet of contraceptives."  

Ken Weiss talked of his travel experiences in conducting research for Beyond 7 Billion, a series of in-depth reports that he wrote for the Los Angeles Times on the challenges posed by population growth in the developing world.  In his remarks he emphasized  the importance of empowering women. "What I saw over and over again in our travels is that any time I saw a woman who realized her opportunities or that that she had the power or ability to plan her family she seized it."

http://www.populationinstitute.org/newsroom/news/view/53/